Method of loading wrapped pipe



1931- A. A. CHAMBERS METHOD OF LOADING WRAPPED PIPE Filed May 31, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. W 4;. 6m:

BY W 7 W A TTORNEYS.

1931- A. A. CHAMBERS ED PIPE Filed May 31, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 W62 iwfiaxffw v M ATTORNEYS.

INVENTOR.

l atented F eb. 17, 193i UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIC ALFRED A. CHAMBERS, OF YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO GENERAL PAINT COR- PORATION, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORATION OF NEVADA METHOD OF LOADING WRAPPED PIPE Application filed May 31,

This invention relates to a method of loading wrapped pipe and especially to a method of loading pipe of this character in railway cars.

\Vhen laying a pipe line such as used in the oil fields whether it be for carrying oil, gas, or otherwise, a ditch is usually dug in which the pipe is laid after which the soil is replaced and tamped above the pipe. In actual practice it has been found that the pipe is subject to corrosion due to moisture and the presence of chemicals in the soil, hence it was found that it was necessary to apply a. protective covering to the pipe before lay ing the same. Protective coverings of different types have been'developed but the most successful and commonly used is a wrapping of feltsaturated with a bituminous material, this wrapping being protected by an exterior wrapping of heavy paper or-the like. Heretofore pipe has generally been wrapped in the field due to the frail or easily damaged surface of the wrapping and the danger of scoring, tearing, or destroying the wrapping before the pipe reaches the field. There are a great many difliculties connected with wrapping pipe in the field, such as inaccessibility,

lack of skilled labor, proper equipment, etc., therefore it is very desirable to be able to wrap the pipe in the mill where there are all the facilities for proper wrapping.

Early in the history of mill wrapping it was, recognized that the method of loading and packing wrapped pipe in railway cars would of necessity have to receive careful attention as such a mode of transportation of a relatiy'ely delicate but tremendously heavy product like wrapped pipe was almost out of the question. In fact early .ex-perience showed that stopping and starting of the cars caused the pipe to slide on the skids between the stakes thereby causing abrasion to the point where serious complaints were received and large sums of money were spent in repairs to the wrapping which was damaged in transit.

The object of the presentinvent-ion is to generally improve the loading and transport ing of wrapped pipe in railway cars; to provide a method of loading whereby abrasion 1930. Serial No. 458,752.

caused by movement of the pipe with relation to the stakes and skids is reduced to' a negligible factor; to provide a method of loading whereby a semi-fioating load is obtained, that is, a load of pipe which has a limited movement both laterally and longi-a tudinally in the car; to provide a method of loading whereby movement of individual pipes is reduced to a minimum; and further, to provide a method of loading pipe upon skids and between stakes and of securing the pipes between thestakes whereby the load of pipe together with the skids and stakes will move substantially as a unit and thereby reduce abrasion to a minimum.

The method of loading a railway car is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in Which Fig. l is a perspective view of a car showing loaded,

Fig. 2 is a cross section of the load,

Fig. .3 is a similar cross section showing layers-of padding interposed between each layer of pipe, I

Fig. 4 shows the manner of beveling off the top ends of the stakes, and'of securing the clamping bands with relation thereto, and

Fig. 5 is a cross section of the car showing the manner of placing the skids and stakes Within the car prior to loading the pipe therein.

Referring to the drawings in detail and 1 particularly Figs. v1, 2 and 3., it may be stated that when a car is being prepared to receive a load of pipe it is first essential to sweep it out and remove all nails, blocking, and other projections which might contact with and damage the pipe wrapping. Skids such as indicated at 2, are then cut into lengths about three inches less than the inside width of the car floor. These skids are usually made of hardwood two by SlX in cross section. Steel clamping bands are then cut to lengths of thirty to forty feet, or of a length suflicient to pass entirely around the seventeen inches.

bands apolied thereto are then placed across the car oor at suitable intervals with the band side down and the free ends of the band are run up over both car sides and hung over the outside.

Hardwood stakes four by four and from five to eight feet long are then set upright one at each end of the skids as shown at 3, and the steel clamping bands are lightly stapled to the exterior surface of each stake or to the faces adjacent the car sides. The stakes in a vertical position are then toenailed to the skids one at each end of the skids. A; padding composed of baled excelsior is placed over the skids. The type of excelsior employed comes in bales and when the bales are opened they are found to consist of separate layers, which are commonly about three inches thick. These three inch layers are laid over the skids from end to end and present a face of approximately Excelsior pads are then applied to the inner face of the stakes as shown at 5. These pads are approximately twelve inches wide and they are tied around the stakes by wires or the like, such as indicated at 6.

The stakes are now blocked away from the car sides. One inch blocks are placed between the stakes and the car sides about eighteen inches from the floor as shown at 7, and two inch. blocks are placed in a like position but near the top of the car side as shown at 8. The car is then ready for loading and a layer of pipe is then laid in the car. If single length pipe is being shipped, that is, a pipe having a continuous smooth surface, the next layer is placed in the car and the process continued until the car is fully loaded. On the other hand, if the pipe is double length, or in other words, made up of two lengths circumferentially welded, additional padding will be required. That is, a

. wrapping of excelsior padding is placed around eachpipe on o posite sidesof the welded joints and in a dition thereto pads are laid crosswise of the pipe. Such a layer of v padding is placed between each layer of pipe and the process is continued until the car is fully loaded.

The number of skids and corresponding pairs of stakes required depends upon the height of the load above the car sides, the

length of the pipe, etc. Normally there are never less than three skids and pairs of stakes but as many as ten pairs of stakes and skids are required when large pipe of twenty foot lengths or more are loaded high above the car sides.

After a car has been fully loaded a string of exeelsior pads is laid over the top of the load between each pair of stakes and the top ends of the stakes are cut or beveled off a few inches below the level of the top of the load with the beveled high sides next to the of the band cut off and bent down.

tension or pull exerted by the bands is suf- I ficient to hold the upper ends of the stakes away from the car sides when the one and two inch blocks previously inserted are knocked out or removed.

The individual bands are then fastened to the stakes near the top thereof by means of drive screws and washers or by means of drive screws and short pieces of the band punched with holes to receive the drive screws. These pieces of band are shown at 11 and are applied for the purpose of preventing the bands from slipping or sliding off the stakes when the stakes and pipes move under impacts. By positioning the stakes so that they overhang the ends of the skids, corners are provided into which the band cuts when tension is applied. The same thing happens at the upper' ends of the stakes. This is important as it reduces the chances of the bands slipping off the skids or stakes to a minimum. After the bands have been applied and tightened and secured by the punched bands as shown at 11, the loading is completed and it forms a load which is free toswing laterally with relation to the sides of the car due to the clearance between the upper ends of the stakes and the sides of the car, and it also provides a load in which the skids and stakes are so securely tied with relation to the pipe that little, if any, tendency of movement between the pipe, stakes and skids will take place. If anything, the

skids and stakeswill move with the load when a car. is subjected to heavy jolts as in switching, starting, stopping, etc, hence abrasion caused by movement between the pipe and stakes or skids is reduced to a minimum.

In summing up the advantages of this method of loading it will first of all be noted that a floating load has been obtained due to the clearance between the stakes and the sides of the car; secondly, the bands employed areapplied to the exterior surfaces of the skids and stakes and as such are held entirely out of contact with the surface of the pipe and as such cannot cause abrasion thereof; third, beveling of the upper ends of the stakes at a point below the top of the load provides lateral and downward pressure on the top row of pipe thus reducing longitudinal shifting of the pipe between the stakes and skids; fourth, the method of fasof pipe and around the pipe where welded joints are employed prevents the welded joint of one pipe from cutting into another and it furthermore produces a friction which reduces longitudinal shifting of the pipes; sixth, by placing the stakes and toe-nailing them to the skids in such a manner that they overhang-the ends of the skids, corners e provided into which the bands cut thereby forming seats to retain the bands and secure them against sideways movement; seventh, the use of excelsior pads wrapped around the pipes is important for the reasons already stated and the placing of cross layers of padding is also important particularly at the ends of the pipes as it builds up the load and maintains its level equal at ends and center; eighth, the use of wide pads on top of the skids permits the pads to roll around the skids if any movement of the pipe takes place and it insures a padded surface even though movement does take place.

' While certainfeatures of the present invention are more 'or less specifically described, ll wish it understood that various changes may be resorted to within the scope of the appended claims'. Similarly, that. the materials and finishes of the several parts em- 7 ployed may be such as the manufacturer may decide, or varying conditions or uses may demand.

Having, thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A method of loading wrapped pipe in railway cars which consists in placing a plurality of skids on the floor of the car and crosswise thereof, arranging stakes at the ends of the skids adjacent the sides of the car, placing the wrapped pipe in layers bn top of the skids and between the stakes, passing a clamping band around the skids and stakes and over the load, and then tightening and securing the clamping band so as to form a clamped bundle of pipe supported by the floor of the car and offering sufficient resistance to remain stationary under light shocks but capable of longitudinal and lateral movement under heavy shocks.

2. A method of loading wrapped pipe in railway cars having side walls which consists in placing a plurality of skids on the floor of the car and crosswise thereof, arranging stakes at the ends of the skids adjacent'each side wall, introducing temporary blocks between the stakes and the side walls to maintain a clearance between the stakes and the side walls of the car during the loading of the pipe, placing the wrapped pipe in layers on top of the skids and between the stakes,

passing a clamping band around the skids and stakes and over the load, tightening and securing the band so as to form a clamped bundle of pipe supported by the fioor of the car and said bundle offering sufficient resistance to remain stationary under light shocks but capable of longitudinal and lateral movement as a unit under heavy shocks, and re-.

moving the spacing blocks to permit lateral movement of the bundle.

3. A method of loading wrapped pipe in railway cars having side walls which consists in placing a plurality of skids on the floor of the car and crosswise thereof, arranging stakes at the ends of the skids but leaving a space between the stakes and the side walls, placing padding over the skids and over the inner faces of the stakes, loading the pipe in layers on top of the padded skids and between the padded stakes, passing a clamping band around the skids and. stakes and over the load and then tightening and securing the clamping bands so as to form a clamped'bundle of pipe which is-supported by the floor of the car and which offers sufiicient resistance to remain stationary under light shocks but capable oflongitudinal and lateral movement as a unit under heavy shocks.

4. A method of loading wrapped pipe in railway cars having. side walls which consists in placing a plurality of skids on the floor of the car and crosswise thereof, arranging stakes at the ends of the skids but leaving a space between the stakes and the sidewalls, placing padding over the skids and over the inner faces of the stakes, loading the pipe in layers on top of the padded skids and between the padded stakes, placing padding between each layer of pipe, placing padding across the top. of the load of pipe between the stakes, passing a clamping band around the skids and the stakes and over the padding placed on top of the load, and then tightening and securing the clamping bands so as to form a clamped bundle of pipe which is supported'by the floor of the car and which offers sufficient resistance to normally remain stationary but which is capable of. both longitudinal and lateral movement as a unit under heavy shock.

5.'A method of loading wrapped pipe on railway cars which consists in placing a series of clamping bands crosswise of the floor of the car, placing skids on top of the clamping bands, arranging stakes at each end of the skids andtoe-nailing them to the skids in a position where the stakes slightly overhang the ends of the skids, applying padding to the upper surface of the skids and to the inner faces of the stakes, loading the pipe in layers on top of the padded skids and between the padded stakes, placing padding on top of the pipe when loaded at points between the stakes, cutting the stakes on an angle at a point below the topmost layer of pipe, passing the clamping bands upwardly around the stakes over the upper cut angular ends and over the padding on top of the load, and then tightening and securing the bands so as to form a clamped bundle of pipe supported by the fioor of the car and oflering suflicient resistance to remain stationary under light shocks but capable of longitudinal and lateral movement as a unit under heavy shocks.

6. A method of loading wrapped pipe on railway cars which consists in placing a series of clamping bands crosswise of the floor of the car, placing skids on top of the clamping bands, arranging stakes at each end of the skids and toe-nailing them to the skids in a position where the stakes slightly overhang the ends of the skids, applying padding to the upper surface of the skids and to the inner faces of the stakes, loading the pipe in ayers on top of the padded skids and be tween the padded stakes, placing padding on top of the pipe when loaded at points between the stakes, cutting the stakes on an angle at a point below the topmost layer of pipe, passing the clamping bands upwardly around the stakes over the upper cut angular ends and over the padding on top of the load, tightening and securing the bands so'as to form a clamped bundle of pipe supported by the floor of the car, and securing the clamp ing bands with relation to the outer faces of the stakes and skids to prevent accidental removal of the clamping bands.

7. The method of protecting and packaging pipe for shipment which consists in applying to the pipe a felt layer saturated with a protective asphaltic compound, subsequently applying to the exterior ofthe wrapped pipe a wrapping of tough opaque paper, 7

assembling the desired number of pipe sections into a bundle of approximately carload size, interspersing between the layers of pipe within'the bundle protective pads circumferentially embracing the bundle with a padded wooden ring, passing metal bands around said ring, and drawing up on the bands to secure the bundle in a substantially rigid unit.

8. A method of forming a carload package of wrapped pipe which consists in inserting into the car wooden padded bottom and side stays, around which stays metal bands have been passed, placing pipe within the stays to fill the enclosed space, spacing the side stays slightly from the side of the car during the loading operation, tighteningtl'ie bands to hold the pipe in a rigid unit of substantially carload size, and then removing the spacing means which space the side stays from the car so as to leave a limited space all around the unit for limited clearance so as to adapt itself to the car movements and without disturbing the various pipe elements with respect to one another.

9. A method of forming a carload package of wrapped pipe which consists in inserting into the car wooden bottom and side stays, around which stays metal bands have been passed, placing pipe within the stays to fill the enclosed space, spacing the side stays slightly from the side of the car during the loading operation, tightening the bands to hold the pipe in a rigid unit of substantially carload size, and then removing the spacing means which space the side stays from the car whereby the unit may have a limited movement within the car without relative movement of the elements constituting the unit.

10. A pipe package unit consisting of a bundle of wrapped pipe, each pipe section separately wrapped, the package surrounded by wooden padded stays, metal bands passed around the stays and drawn taut to hold the pipe elements in a substantially rigid unit whereby there is no relative movement of any pipe element with respect to another within the unit.

11. A pipe package unit consisting of a bundle of wrapped pipe, each pipe section separately wrapped, the package surrounded by wooden padded stays, metal bands passed around the stays and drawn taut to hold the pipe elements in a substantially rigid unit whereby there is no relative movement of any pipe element with respect to another within the unit, said padded stays comprising each a pair ofside Wooden bars and a bottom cross bar, said side and bottom bars arranged in the same vertical plane, the upper ends of said bars being beveled so that the beveled edges are substantially tangential to the top corner pipe sections.

12. A pipe package unit consisting of a bundle of wrapped pipe,. each pipe section separately wrapped, the package surrounded by wooden padded stays, metal bands passed around the stays and. drawn taut to hold the pipe elements in a substantially rigid unit whereby there is no relative movement of any pipe element with respect to another within the unit, said padded stays comprising each" a pair of side wooden bars and a bottom cross bar, said side and bottom bars arranged in the same vertical plane, the upper ends of said bars being beveled so that the beveled edges are substantially tangential to the top corner pipe sections, to prevent lateral disarrangement of the bands on the i stakes.

ALFRED A. CHAMBERS. 

